Improvement in machines for separating from the stalk and twisting woody fibers



H. W. BOWEN.

Machine for Separating from' the Stalk and Twisting Woddy Fibres.-

No. 40,322. Patented Oct. 20, 1863.

Ira/ 711 01 U/z 15118 $366. iw /im @ZK/W I??? $73 V47 a M N. PETER5. Phuw-Umogn hen wnmn lun, D. C,

UNIT D STATES PATENT OF ICE.

HENRY \V. BOWEN, OE PROVIDENCE, RHODE ISLAND.

IMPROVEMENT IN MACHINES FOR SEPARAT ING FROM THE STALK AND TWISTING WOODY FIBERS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 410,322, dated October 20, 1863.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, HENRY V7. BOWEN, a resident of the city and county of Providence, and State of Rhode Island, have invented a new and useful Machine for Separating Voody Fibers from Stalks and Spinning or Twisting such Fibers; and I do hereby declare the same to be fully described in the following specification and represented in the accompanying drawings, of which- Figure 1 is a top View, Figs. 2 and 3 side elevations, and Fig. Aavertical and longitudinal section, of it.

The principalpart of my invention is a combination consisting not only of machinery for holding and revolving a piece of flax orfibrous stalk, machinery for raising the end of afiber or portion of the outer covering of the stalk, machinery for seizing the fiber or raised portion and stripping the fiber from the stalk,

but machinery for twisting the fiber or fibers;

and my invention further consists in the abovementioned combination and a mechanism for drawing the fiber or fibers while being twisted or spun.

In the drawings, A denotes the frame of the machine. Vithin this frame there is a stationary center, a, and a rotary shaft, 1). apiece of flax or other fibrous stalk, B, while being operated on, being held between and by the center a and the shaft 1), as an article to be turned is usually held in a lathe. The shaft 1) has a ratchet, c, fixed on it, which is put into intermittent revolution by means of a pawl, (Z, actuated by a crank, e, and a rod, f, connecting one arm of such crank with the wrist of a crank-wheel, g, such wheel being fixed on one end of a cam-shaft, C. On the opposite end of the said cam-shaft there is a gear-wheel, D, which engages with a pinion, E, carried by a driving-shaft, F, the whole being arranged as shown in the drawings. The teeth do not extend entirely around the periphery of the wheel D, there beingaspace or are, k, thereof, on which there are no teeth. The object of this will be hereinafter explained.

Close alongside ofthe center a a chisel,i,is arranged, and so as to be capable of sliding in a line parallel, or thereabout, 'to the axis of the flax or fibrous stalk. This chisel is to have such motions imparted to it as to cause it to enter the end of the stalk and raise a fibrous 4 the shaft 0. They consist not only of a jaw,-

0, fixed to the shaft, but of a movable leverspring jaw, 1), which is hinged to the first j aw, and carries an arm, q, through which a regulating-screw, r, is screwed, so that one end of such screw may abut against the jaw 19. A cam, s, fixed on the frame A, serves to close the jaws, or to force the jaw 12 toward the jaw 0 at the proper time for the two to seize the raised fiber. After the said fiber may have been so seized by the jaws, their continued rotary motion will cause them to strip it from the stalk. As the jaws descend with the fiber, they lay it between the jaws of the twistingspindle or twister, which is shown at G. The twister G has two plate-jaws, t a, one of which is stationary and the other movable, thelatter being borne against the former by one or more springs, '1) o. The movable jaw has an arm, w, extending from it, which, during the rotation of the twister and while the nippers D may be in a proper position to drop the fiber, will be carried against the nippers with force such as to move thejaw 20 away from the jaw t. one end of the fiber falling between them.

Two draft-rollers, H H, are arranged in front of the twister, as shown in the drawings. The twister has a grooved pulley, x, fixed on it. An endless band, '1, works around the said pulley, and a pulley, .2, carried by a shaft, a.

On one extremity of the shaft (6 there is a grooved pulley, b, which receives an endless band, 0, which goes around a driving-wheel, d, fixed on the driving-shaft F. By such means the twister will be put in revolution when the driving-shaft may be revolved. The draw rollers H H have their shafts supported in a rocker-frame, I, and connected by gears e f. The shaft of one of the draw-rollers carries a bevel-gear, g, which engages with another bevelgear, h, carried by a horizontal shaft, '5. This latter shaft receives its motion by means of an endless belt, 7c,which goes around two pulleys, Z m, one of which is fixed on the shaft 2" and the other on the cam-shaft O. From the rocker-frame I a forked arm, K, projects upward and embraces an eccentric, L, fixed on the said cam-shaft. By means of the operation of the eccentric on the arm the draw-rollers will be caused to advance toward and recede from the twister. They seize the fiber and draw it forward while it may be in the act of being twisted.

Resting on the periphery of the gear-wheel D is ahooked catch, M, which is jointed to the upper end of a lever, N. There is also a pin, 0, projecting'from one side of the pinion, E.

Just before the nippers drop the fiber their rotary'motion will be arrested, in order that they may hold one end of the fiber, while the twister may be twisting the fiber at its opposite end. This stoppage of the nippers will be caused by the blank space or are h of the gear D, for when the driving-pinion may arrive at this space it will produce no rotary motion of the gear-wheel. At the proper time the gear will be pulled around into engage ment with the pinion by the action of the hooked catch M, which will be moved back by the pressure of the pin 0 against the lever N, a retracting-spring 1?, operating subse quently to restore the 'ever and catch-tooth to their respective places. After the fiber may have been twisted, as described, it will be dropped into the bite of the draft-rollers,

which on seizing it will be advanced toward the twister, and in the meantime will advance on the fiber, after which they will retreat, so as to pull it away from the twister.

The machine isintended to make a continuous yarn,which, as fast as it maybe produced,

will be delivered from the machine by the draw-rollers thereof. This formation of a continuous yarn will be effected by the twisting and drawing operations, and by each fiber that may be stripped from the stalk being dropped upon that or some of th osc which may have been just previously so stripped and laid within the nippers. The object of revolving the stalk with an intermittent motion is to enable strips or fibers to be taken in succession from its external surface. The part 5 is to have a chisel-edge, or is to be otherwise propcrly constructed, so as to produce the rotation of the stalk while the said part b maybe revolved. A single stalk is to be operated on at a time, it being introduced into as well as removed from the machine by manual labor, the movements of the machine being arrested at the time.

I.claim 1. A combination consisting of the following elements or their mechanical equivalents, viz: first, machinery for holding and revolving the stalk with an intermittent motion; sec ond, machinery for raising the end of a fiber, in order that such may be seized by the nippers or mechanism by which such fiber is to be stripped from the stalk; third, machinery for seizing the fiber and stripping it from the stalk; fourth, machinery for twisting the fiber or fibers, the whole being to operate together substantially as hereinbefore described.

2. A combination consisting not only of the above mentioned elements, but machinery, substantially as specified, for drawing the fiber or fibers in manner and with respect to the twister, as hereinbefore explained.

HENRY \V. BOXVEN.

Vitnesse's: v

HENRY MARTIN, ALBERT M. HEWITT. 

